2017 has its drug scare du jour. An epidemic of spice use is wreaking havoc among homeless and prison communities and the services that support them, and no one quite knows what to do about it.

First, let’s get one thing clear. We have not opened a psychopharmacological portal to the underworld. Legions of the flesh-eating undead are not roaming our streets, whatever some newspaper and TV outlets might suggest. In labelling people using spice as zombies, the media have allowed us to forget that these are vulnerable people, who are using a terrifyingly obliviating substance to escape an unbearably boring, painful or depressing reality. They are not extras from a horror movie, but people who need support.

For someone looking to pass a seemingly endless prison sentence with nothing to do, the drug's appeal becomes obvious

Spice is actually a collection of substances called synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs), originally designed to mimic cannabis, but found to be far more potent, with a raft of additional, unexpected effects not seen with cannabis, including seizures, numbing, near-catatonic trips lasting hours, significant harm to users’ physical and mental health, and potentially even death. Effects can be deeply confusing, terrifying, numbing and sedating. However, for someone looking to pass a seemingly endless prison sentence with nothing to do, or a freezing night on the streets with no prospect of meaningful employment or guarantee of personal safety, the appeal becomes obvious.

Rather than eradicate spice use, the Psychoactive Substances Act – which came into force in 2016, restricting the production, sale and supply of what were previously known as “legal highs” – concentrated its use in vulnerable populations where it was already gaining traction, while ramping up the dangers posed through surrendering control of these substances to the illegal market. Products are now more potent and variable, and police have remarked that spice has become more dangerous since the act came in nearly a year ago. These products are also cheap, being easily bought from Chinese labs and prepared in the UK at prices that allow huge profits for the dealers now aggressively selling them.

Prohibition of an entire market where demand exists opens up a Pandora’s box of unintended consequences, and the recent government response to spice has been disastrously unthinking. Earlier this year they simply shunted these chemicals from under the remit of the Psychoactive Substances Act and instead defined them as a class B controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act. There are now even calls to increase their classification to class A. With each step, the sanctions on those using these substances have increased, criminalising users and strengthening the revolving door between homelessness and prison.

Prof David Nutt, former chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, has suggested that part of the solution may lie in developing an SCRA antidote to return people from the depths of a Spice overdose, as Naloxone does for heroin. This would undoubtedly save lives and reduce the burden on emergency services, which are limited in their powers to help vulnerable, and sometimes violent people under the influence of spice. But once someone in the grip of a spice overdose is returned to reality, how do you then start to address the problems in their life that led to that point? There is no quick pharmacological antidote to homelessness, unemployment, a history of abuse, poor mental health or an inescapably miserable existence. The solutions to this crisis must therefore be more long-lasting, and more fundamental. We must address why so many people are finding themselves in situations where obliteration is the only answer.

Legal regulation of cannabis has also been touted as a solution to the spice epidemic. The Netherlands is cited as an example where, due to its long-running coffeeshop model of cannabis access, spice has not taken hold. It should not be overlooked, however, that Dutch prisons and social support services are leagues away from those in the UK. Better prisons and better social support reduces the need for such extreme means of escape. There are a wealth of good reasons to legalise cannabis, not least to restrict sales to young people, control the availability of stronger strains like skunk, and cut out organised crime. But this will not, on its own, eradicate the use of spice, which is far cheaper, stronger and more addictive than the cannabis it has replaced. Spice has found its niche market, and tackling its use means tackling users’ underlying issues.

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The incidents occurring every day in city centres and homeless services across the UK are shocking to witness, terrifying to experience and dangerous for the emergency service staff who have to deal with them. I don’t want to downplay these events, but drug crises are not unprecedented. The early 2000s crack epidemic had emergency services and homeless charities in similar panics. While they could cope with relatively docile service users on opiates, crack made users erratic and dangerous. Once the novelty subsided in the media, treatment services found that the tools for helping both groups were largely similar – help finding housing, employment and treatment for mental and physical health – and could be put into service so long as there was sufficient staffing and training to ensure their workers’ safety.

Our drug treatment services throughout the country are equipped to deal with spice use, but whereas those who use heroin may first engage with services in the form of needle exchanges as a first step to further support, those who use spice are less likely to seek treatment, and so increased outreach is needed. This means greater support and staffing, and an understanding of spice users’ problems. Local governments, responsible for commissioning these services, should be made aware of this. Limiting resources means the most vulnerable and problematic people will fall through ever-increasing cracks, as homeless shelters and drug treatment services are unable to provide for them.

There is no one quick fix to the problems unfolding on the streets of our cities. If the problems with spice are to be controlled, a range of solutions are needed to drive down demand among vulnerable communities. Increased funding and support for homeless and drug treatment services, intelligent prison reform and cannabis regulation all have their part to play. Currently the government is ignoring all of these options, while Spice panic spirals.